Five Days to Save Christmas
by OneCreativeIdiot
Summary: A Dalmatian pup and a lion cub go on a long journey to retrieve a cherished holiday object that has been stolen.


AUTHOR'S NOTE: This fanfic you're about to read is a little experiment. When I first thought up of this story, I originally planned it to be a novel. But with the pressure of my other stories squeezing me tightly, I decided that I would shorten this to the best of my abilities. Also, there's one scene that involves another well-known holiday, but I promise you it is not offensive at all. And now, I present to you my very own Christmas fanfic!

DISCLAIMER: All characters under the "Disney" name are property of Walt Disney Animation Studios; the name "Disneyland" and all other elements related to "Disney" are property of the Walt Disney Company.

Similar to every other place around the world who celebrated the Christmas holiday, the magical land of Disneyland was in full swing preparing for the big day. Practically all of the stores were still crammed with characters gathering and purchasing items like toys and food. Those who were doing so were those who had failed to do their shopping early when they had the chance. Aside from that, there was a great sense of the holiday spirit being spread from prince to princess and from young animal to old animal. Carols were being sung, characters were skating on the frozen solid lake of the city park, and decorations were displayed to let everyone know that this year's Christmas was to be the happiest yet.

Every character in Disneyland was filled to the top with Christmas cheer. That was what most of them thought, though. There was a certain part of Disneyland that was gloomy all-year round. No matter what time of year it was, the place was always dull and murky. It was a certain place that none of the other characters cared about- there was a good reason, it was just that no one wanted to bring it up. So, most of the time, this particular part of Disneyland was forgotten.

However, there was a time when the eerie part of Disneyland was once recognized. This is the story of how it all happened.

Everything began on the 19th of December- precisely six days until Christmas. Disneyland was ready for the great holiday. Just like everyone else around the world, all of the characters were the happiest they could be.

What none of the characters were aware of was that there was one familiar young character who was not in the holiday spirit. He was a lion cub named Simba. Much like all of the young Disney characters, Simba was usually so ecstatic around Christmas time. Unfortunately, all of the jolliness had been knocked right out of him. Earlier, he was talking to a couple of his friends when his best friend, another lion cub named Nala, pulled him aside and confronted him about something he said behind her back. Simba was awfully confused; he had never said anything bad behind her back, so why was he getting yelled at. As much as he tried to defend himself and explain that her claim was false, Nala, in a fit of rage, broke off their friendship. Simba was left completely heartbroken.

As he drowned in misery, Simba came to find that he was not the only character everyone knew that had lost his festive mood. His other best friend, a Dalmatian pup named Patch, had been looking forward to celebrating Christmas with his family. The only problem was that his entire family was busy with their own thing; therefore, they were unable to perform their annual traditions such as reading stories and playing games. What made Patch upset the most was that no one seemed to notice when he tried to bring it up to anyone- even his parents didn't pay him any mind. For Patch, it was devastating.

When the broken-hearted Simba and the forlorn Patch met in the park of Animahiem, the city where they lived in which was also the capital of Disneyland, they both talked to each other about their issues. Both of them decided that they would try their best to keep their spirits up. And for them, there was no better way to start their plan of action than by having a classic snowball fight.

It wasn't until a little after sunset when they both realized that they needed to return home. It was quickly decided that they would both race to Patch's house since it was the closest. But they were unable to even start their competitive game when Simba spotted a dirty, beat-up, unknown van parked outside the House of Mouse, which was one Disneyland's most recognized establishments and practically every character's favorite night spot. He and Patch snuck closer to the van when two strange figures rushed out of the entrance to the building. They were carrying something large and shiny. When the duo opened the van's back doors and loaded the item into the storage compartment, anyone could see what the object was- a giant gold star with silver sparkles attached to a base of some kind.

Both Patch and Simba gasped in horror. That was the tree topper for the House of Mouse's Christmas Tree. The two men were stealing it!

Patch, not even thinking for his own safety, dashed after the van when it sped away down Main Street. Simba, not thinking as well, ran after Patch and the thieves' van. Just as anyone could predict it, both the pup and cub were unable to catch up with the van and it drove into the distance.

"What now, Patch?" inquired Simba as he and his pal panted- they were both obviously out of breath.

At the same moment they walked onto the sidewalk, another van sped past. Its rear door was open a bit, and it would be easy for them to squeeze inside. Without any hesitation, Patch and Simba sprinted after the van and hopped aboard. They attempted to stay awake as long as they could. However, both Patch and Simba could not fight against fatigue and they fell asleep in the back of the van as it drove out of Animahiem.

Patch and Simba woke up the next morning to discover that the van's engine was no longer running. They had stopped at a gas station in an unfamiliar part of Disneyland. As a matter of fact, it was practically in the middle of nowhere! Just to increase their panic, Patch and Simba later found out that the van they had traveled in had an overheated radiator- both pup and cub found this odd because the weather felt like it was 29 degrees Fahrenheit.

Seeing that there was a small convenience store nearby, Patch told Simba: "We might as well get something to eat. We've got a long journey ahead of us."

They were thankful that they both had done those small jobs all of those months ago so they could all of the money they had. They didn't have what would be classified as a "fortune", but it was a very big amount that they both had. With all of their money put together, Patch and Simba had enough to purchase two video game consoles- they had so much in the pockets of their jackets.

Knowing that it would be a lengthy journey to the thieves' hideout and back to Animahiem, Patch and Simba agreed not to spend some much money at the small store. They only bought a container of various chopped-up fruit, as well as two bags of candy- one was full of bubble gum and the other was stuffed with bite-sized chocolates filled with nougat. It was undoubtedly unhealthy for them to be snacking on sugar-filled treats along the way, but in this type of situation, it was out of the question. Neither Patch or Simba seemed to care about it either. Instead, once they ate the fruit from the container, they departed from the gas station and followed the road to the next town or city.

It was a long, tiring journey to wherever there would be characters located. Patch and Simba walked along the side of the road so they wouldn't get hit by any vehicles. It would've been easier if they had signaled for a car to drive them to the nearest town or city, but hardly a single vehicle drove by. Every so often, a truck would pass them but the driver wouldn't pull their vehicle over and ask why they were out in the middle of nowhere. Despite this, Patch and Simba continued on their journey to find and bring back the House of Mouse's Tree Topper.

The duo soon came across a bus station that was empty. Both Partch and Simba instantly decided to take a short rest before resuming their exhausting journey. While they relaxed in the space under the bench, it was difficult for them to keep warm. Little Patch shivered the most. Simba, who was obviously larger than the Dalmatian pup, brought his friend close to him so he could share his body heat with him and give him a bit of strength. Once again, drowsiness overtook them and they both fell asleep.

By the time they woke up, the sun was about to beginning setting. It was all too clear that it was getting extremely late. Patch and Simba wanted to go home but they evidently couldn't. Mainly because of the mission at hand and the fact that they were at a great distance from Animahiem. There was nothing they could do now but continue their journey through Disneyland.

Patch and Simba braved on and soon came across a large road sign that said: "Laugh-O-Gramsburg Awaits You". Two smiles appeared on the faces of the pup and cub. They knew that they would hopefully be close to catching the two thieves who robbed the House of Mouse of its tree topper.

Everything in the town of Laugh-O-Gramsburg was quite bizarre. The appearances of both the citizens and the town itself was something Patch and Simba had never seen before. For them, it was as if they had stepped into another world.

A massive digital clock was on one of the large buildings ahead of the duo. The time was 5:14 PM. Patch and Simba could not believe they actually slept that long in the cold without getting frostbite. Also on the clock was a line of text that read in all capital letters: "5 DAYS TILL CHRISTMAS". Just a single glance at it was enough to confirm that time was running out very slowly.

Patch looked around the area that he and Simba was currently in. There were a few shops underneath the towering columns of apartment buildings; one of which caught the Dalmatian pup's attention. It was a pizzeria. When Simba saw what his pal was staring at, he got excited as well. Something hot and mouth-watering sounded good at the present moment, and nothing could satisfy their rising hunger more than a delicious slice of pizza.

Just as they had successfully crossed the street, Simba noticed a young couple strolling down the sidewalk nearby. Both the man and woman were looking immensely miserable. Though he and Patch couldn't hear exactly what they were chatting about, they both could tell that the man and woman were poor and had hardly made enough money that day. Upon learning that they practically had nothing to feed their two children, Patch and Simba made the decision to help them out.

Patch and Simba entered the pizzeria and came out a few minutes later with a box of pizza and a two-liter bottle of lemonade. They couldn't believe how fast it was to get a pizza pie in this particular town, but it didn't matter now, they had a small task to complete. Both were fortunate that the indigent couple had ceased walking and sat down on a wooden bench. Simba carried the pizza box and the bottle while Patch spoke to the man and his wife. They were both touched when Patch told them that he and Simba bought some food for them and their children. But instead of taking the pizza and lemonade to their home, the poor couple invited Patch and Simba to come with them.

In the apartment where the unfortunate family resided, Patch and Simba could not help but feel pity for the two young children- a boy and a girl -who didn't have that much to do. It was especially upsetting to see that their Christmas tree was nothing more but a miserable plant that wasn't even one foot tall. Such a sight was incredibly depressing.

After eating what the generous duo had brought for them, Patch and Simba told the mother and father that they should be leaving. However, seeing that darkness was falling fast, the family insisted that they should spend the night with them. A blanket and pillows were fetched from the narrow closet and a nice little bed was set up on the aged couch.

Shortly before they drifted off to sleep, Simba asked Patch: "Are you sure this is a good idea? Don't you think everyone in Animahiem is worried about us?"

"I doubt it," replied Patch. "Everyone had their backs turned on us, so that's highly unlikely."

"But do you think we'll find the robbers and bring the tree topper back to the city in time?"

"Don't worry about a thing, Simba. I'm positive that we will get a head start on our journey tomorrow morning."

Unfortunately, Mother Nature had something else in mind.

The next morning, the town of Laugh-O-Gramsburg was hit by a snowstorm. All of the streets and sidewalks had become icy despite having been covered in a brine solution days before. Snow continuously plummeted from the mass of gray clouds above.

Patch and Simba, aware that they had absolutely no choice, gathered all of their bravery and candy and boldly walked out into the frigid storm. Thankfully the storm wasn't that fierce, but no one could see that far out- everything beyond a certain distance was cut out of view by what appeared to be a dense fog. Nevertheless, Patch struggled down the slippery sidewalk and Simba trailed cautiously behind him.

As the pup and cub made their way throughout Laugh-O-Gramsburg, they had great difficulties traveling even though they were both walking at a steady pace. All of the other inhabitants of the town were struggling as well- especially those who were driving. The vehicles had to been driven at a sluggish speed so no one would end up in a crash. Even though they were driving with great care, the cars and trucks would often slide when the brakes would be applied. Conditions became so bad that everyone and everything had to move extremely slow.

When they had crossed the third street, Patch and Simba spotted a very familiar vehicle in the distance. It was an unmarked, flithy van. They instantly recognized it as the same vehicle used by the thieves. Patch charged towards it with Simba following close behind. The van took off down the road and the duo dashed behind it in a chase. They could've caught up with the van if a gigantic truck hadn't popped up in front of the pup and cub. Patch and Simba tried desperately to stop, but they found themselves sliding forward! The young characters leaned to the left which caused them to move in that direction; they narrowly missed the truck.

For the duration of the chase, Patch and Simba were able to run and slide down the road after the van. At the exact moment when they were both able to reach a close distance from the van, the large vehicle suddenly halted. Patch and Simba ceased skating and flopped onto their stomaches and ducked as low as they could. They slid under the van without getting scratched and continued to glide far away from it. By the time they had finally stopped, both Patch and Simba realised that they had- as impossible as it was -made it to the outskirts of the town.

"Well that was a total bust!" Patch remarked as he and Simba got up and brushed themselves off.

Simba glanced back at Laugh-O-Gramsburg then to Patch. "How are we going to get to the robbers' hideout now?" he inquired.

"We'll have to continue on foot," said Patch. "It may be agonizing, but it'll all be worth it in the end."

Simba wanted to object but forced himself not to. He took a deep breath and walked behind Patch as they presumed their journey to wherever the House of Mouse's Christmas Tree Topper was taken to.

In every single way, the second journey was much similar to the first. For the Dalmatian pup and lion cub, there seemed to be no sign of any nearby town or city in sight. They both believed they would have to walk on for days- that was stressing the most since Patch and Simba were aware that it was December 21. Christmas was four days away.

They eventually stopped for a moment to relax and enjoy some of the candy they still had. Simba also took the opportunity to count up all of the money they had left in their jacket pockets. The amount had dwindled about $20, but all in all, they still had enough to keep them going for a little bit longer.

"How long until we reach the next town, Patch?" Simba asked.

"I can't be sure," replied Patch. "We might find the next town or city by tonight- at least that's what I think. But honestly, I'm not that sure when."

"I'm just hoping that we can return home safely."

"Yeah, but we have to get that tree topper. It may be idiotic to be going after something like an ornament, but somehow I feel like we should be doing this."

Simba nodded. "I have that same feeling, too."

Patch chewed on another piece of bubble gum as he said, "Let's try to keep our spirits up. If we're down in the dumps, we won't get that far."

Simba lowered his head. "I'm just worried about Nala," he told his pal.

"You shouldn't be," Patch replied. "After all, she's not your best friend anymore, so why bother being concerned about her?"

Simba wasn't sure what to say next. Patch did have a point- what was the purpose of worrying about Nala if she didn't see him as her best friend anymore? It was controversial, but Simba ended up pushing his worries out of his mind. The task of retrieving the House of Mouse's Christmas Tree Topper was what was classified as highly important.

Soon after putting the candy back in their pockets, the robbers' van zoomed past Patch and Simba. Even though they were greatly exhausted, the duo bolted after the vehicle, which was traveling at a very quick speed despite the fact that it looked like it was bound to fall apart any time soon. As much as they tried to, Patch and Simba could not gain enough strength in their feeble legs to keep on pursuing the van. Both pup and cub stopped chasing the vehicle and could only watch as it sped away.

Simba was out of breath and he had immense pain in his legs. Patch was suffering the same symptoms as his bigger friend was. Fortunately for them, buildings were visible in the distance. Chances were that it was a town. It would be a lengthy journey, but all of the strenuous walking would pay off.

Simba was able to get up with ease despite the pain. Upon hearing a slight moan, he turned his head to Patch. "What's the matter?" he asked.

"I can't get up," Patch replied as he shivered.

"Come on," Simba said as he approached his little buddy. "I'll let you ride on my back."

Simba lowered himself onto his abdomen and Patch struggled to get on his friend's back. Once the Dalmatian pup was safely on him, the lion cub carefully strolled towards the town ahead of them.

The town, which was named St. Symphony, had a very cheery atmosphere hanging over the entire area. As a matter of fact, practically everyone in the town moved at a cheerful pace, almost as if there was music playing that could only be heard by the citizens themselves. This was quite uncanny to Patch and Simba. As Simba made his way through town with Patch resting on his back, the duo could easily point out that- with the musical atmosphere present -St. Symphony was an interesting part of Disneyland.

Patch and Simba were hoping that at least someone would notice them and come to their aid. However, the characters were too occupied in their own joy that they were both left unseen. This concerned Simba immensely. He was afraid of what would happen to Patch if there was something truly wrong with him- the pup could have developed some form of hypothermia or something, and he would slowly grow more and more ill until it was too late. Simba tried as best as he could to not let the bad thoughts take hold of his mind, but they were incredibly overpowering and the cub was becoming frantic about finding shelter for his pal.

After hours of extensive walking, Simba was stopped by a penguin who had observed him from the windows of his shop. The lion cub explained their situation and the penguin allowed them to spend the night up in his apartment. He gave them something warm to eat and made sure Patch was wrapped up in blankets so he could recover from his minor frostbite.

When the penguin went back down to his shop, Simba's anxiety forced him to ask Patch: "Are you absolutely sure we should have left home to do this?"

Patch inched his head up slowly as if his neck was fragile. "Like I said earlier," he told Simba; "don't get so worried about nothing."

"But you could've froze to death out there!" Simba protested. "And I'm really getting worried about our parents, your brothers and sisters, and- most importantly to me -Nala. Who knows how much she is missing me!"

"I doubt she's missing you," Patch growled. "She called you a horrible friend and vowed never to see you again; how can you miss someone like that?"

"I...I don't know!" groaned Simba. "It's just this feeling I've had in my head since our quest began. Don't you ever stop to think about it, Patch? Do you think that perhaps everyone is worried about us? That we had overreacted and thought of no one but ourselves?"

Patch lowered himself onto the pillow beneath him. "I'll believe it when pigs fly!" he grumbled.

Simba couldn't believe his little friend's attitude- it was greatly disgusting. He just didn't understand why Patch would act like this. Then he remembered that Patch had told him that no one in his family- including his own mother and father -did not do their annual Christmas traditions which had upset the pup. It seemed like an acceptable reason, but his common sense was telling him that running away from home wasn't the proper way to settle the matter. Simba just didn't know what to do. He was struggling to sort out right from wrong. Patch on the other hand hardly showed his concerns- he just got as comfortable as he could and tried to fall asleep. Simba could not fight against Patch; he had nothing to do now but relax and fall asleep.

They woke up early the next morning- the time was 5:51 AM. Patch and Simba remained where they had slept, not speaking a word to each other. Both of them were still angry at one another for their own opinion on whether going after the tree topper was a good idea. They kept their silence until sunlight poured into the apartment at 7:30 AM. The penguin who had brought them in told them that he had breakfast prepared for them.

Patch and Simba ate their breakfast of scrambled eggs and toast in silence. The penguin instantly knew that something was wrong and started talking to the young characters. They eventually interacted with him but it was minuscule. Despite being a bit troubled by their behavior, the penguins said to them: "You know, it's very odd that youngsters like yourselves would act like this around the holiday season."

"Patch and I have just been having some difficulties since we began our journey," Simba explained.

"And where are you two going?" the penguin inquired.

"We're going to see our relatives across Disneyland," Patch answered. "Our parents couldn't drive us there; they're off on business."

"I see," said the penguin. "If I can make a guess, you both are disappointed that your parents cannot be there for you for the holiday; is that true?"

Patch and Simba nodded- it was false but they had to lie for their own reason.

The penguin continued. "Even though something like what you both are going through has never happened to me, I can clearly understand how you feel, even though I don't celebrate Christmas."

This struck shock and curiosity into Patch and Simba's heads. How could a character live in Disneyland and not celebrate Christmas? Such a revelation was really unheard of. The penguin, seeing the disbelief in their eyes, got up and led them to the living room.

Patch and Simba were noticed the first obvious difference from any other living room during the holiday season: there was no Christmas tree anywhere in sight. Replacing it was a golden candelabra that held nine candles- four small ones on the left and right, and a tall one in the center. There were also beautiful decorations set up all over the place, all of which were colored blue and silver, and most had symbols which Patch and Simba once saw but didn't recognize.

The penguin guided the pup and cub around and explained to them the holiday he celebrated. He told them about the candelabra, which was called a menorah, and its meaning for the holiday called "Hanakkuh". Patch and Simba were intrigued by the stories the penguin recited about the holiday's origins and its traditions. It was very interesting for them to learn that both Hanakkuh and Christmas had similar traditions, such as singing songs, eating traditional food, and playing games- the most common revolved around a spinning top called a "dreidel". The thing that fascinated Patch and Simba the most though was about the menorah. Hanakkuh lasted for eight days, and on each night, a candle was lit. The candle in the heart of the menorah kept a small flame lit to light each candle on each night.

"Every year since I was a chick," the penguin told Patch and Simba; "Hanakkah always delighted me so much. Just like you two are on Christmas, I was overjoyed when everyone in my family came together to celebrate a holiday that made us feel so special."

Patch and Simba felt tenderness take hold of them. They looked at each, both knowing that it was time for them to forgive one another for acting so idiotic. It was such behavior that could've torn their friendship apart. The pup and cub forgave each other with no questions asked.

A little after 12 o'clock, Patch and Simba decided that they needed to continue their search for the House of Mouse's Christmas Tree Topper. The penguin saw them off and gave them something unique. They were chocolate coins that were called "Hanukkah gelt". He said to them, "I wish you both the best of luck on the rest of your journey. May you and your families share the love and joy this holiday season."

Patch and Simba left St. Symphony at precisely 3:06 PM- they had stopped at another convenience store to purchase yet another bag of candy for the trip, which was fill of fruit-flavored sugar candies. Of course, they would have departed the town a lot earlier, but they were often halted by the usual "Do Not Walk" lights at the crosswalks which occurred at practically every single one they came across. Despite this annoyance, the duo were able to continue their journey across Disneyland with three days until Christmas.

Once again, it was just as repetitive as the previous journeys were: they walked for hours and occasionally stopped for a rest every few miles, even though none of them knew how many miles they had traveled. But the pup and cub were aware that they were making progress in their journey with all of the elements, like trees and snowdrifts, they passed as they traveled down the long road.

Eventually, Patch and Simba reached a rest area. They snuck into one of the buildings without being seen and set up a small, comfortable camp where they hoped that no one would find them. Using a little bit of the money they still had, Patch and Simba bought two bags of chips and two bottles of soda pop for their dinner. A clock near them read 7:28 PM. Who would've thought they had traveled for over four hours. That didn't matter at the moment for Patch and Simba, who, straight after finishing their cheap supper, went to sleep.

The next day at 7:32 AM, Patch and Simba raced down the highway towards the next town or city. As they hurtled at tremendous speed, it was easy to notice that the road was becoming cracked and full of potholes. "I think I know where we're going!" Patch called out to Simba who was far ahead of him.

Sure enough, they ceased running upon catching sight of a road sign that was broken and covered in heavy snow. Simba made an attempt to turn it over to see where he and Patch were heading to. He was stopped by the Dalmatian pup who pointed towards the city below them.

Simba's jaw dropped. "Is that it?" he asked Patch in disbelief.

"It truly is," Patch replied. He stepped forward. "That is Villaindon."

Villaindon was the most dreariest place in all of Disneyland. All of the buildings were either of old age or had simply fallen into disrepair for no explained reason. This was the place where every Disney Villian resided, which partially explained everything about the city and its vile appearance.

"Do you think that's where the tree topper is?" Simba inquired.

"Chances are that we must've seen this coming once," Patch told his lion cub pal. "Some of those villains down there are responsible for the theft. But the only questions left are who did it and why- that's what we're going to find out. Let's go!"

Simba followed Patch as they charged at full speed towards the repulsive city of Villaindon.

For almost the whole day, the young characters spent every hour- as much as they could -running and hiding from every villain that passed by. They also kept a keen eye out for any of the evil characters who resembled the duo of thieves who days earlier stole the tree topper of the House of Mouse's Christmas Tree, which was probably standing unhappily wherever it was placed- it was most likely that- if it was able to emote -the tree would be shedding tears, grieving for its loss. Patch and Simba were highly aware that they were running out of time. It wasn't that much of a situation for the past few days, but now that it was two days until Christmas, it had morphed into something dire.

Right before 4:28 PM, Patch and Simba had arrived at what they believed was an abandoned factory that must've stood where it was since the early 20th Century. Everything inside was smashed, broken, dusty, and out-of-date. They were certain that the deserted factory was where the tree topper was hidden.

During their search, the duo were scooped up and stuffed into a gunny sack which was sealed tightly. Patch and Simba heard two voices as they were taken away. They tried desperately to escape, but every attempt failed, and they could only wait until the sack was opened.

When it was, Patch and Simba were grabbed by two large hands and hoisted upwards. Standing in front of them was a woman in a black dress that was overshadowed by an enormous fur coat. Her hair was both black and white, and she had pitch darkness in her eyes. Behind her was a great lion with brown fur and a black mane. His eyes were green and on his left eye was a hideous scar.

The pup and cub knew exactly who it was- the woman was Cruella de Vil and the lion was Scar. They both gasped in horror: "Sweet mother of Walt!"

"I thought someone would come to retrieve the star," said Scar. "I just didn't imagine that it would be two little scamps like you."

"Did you honestly think you can save the day?" Cruella asked, lowering her head to make eye contact with their captives. "You actually thought you can be Disneyland's greatest heroes? You might as well think again."

Cruella and Scar circled around Patch and Simba, still being held in the air by their henchmen, whose names were Jasper and Horace. They stated everything about their plan: they, as well as all of the other villains in the city, were disgusted that everyone else could celebrate Christmas with such joy while they were left in the shadows; and by getting the tree topper- which they refered to as the "most special" object -, they would be able to celebrate the best Christmas they'd ever had in years.

Patch and Simba tried vigorously to reason with them, but it was no use. Cruella ordered Jasper and Horace to lock them up in the basement of her house. The two men obeyed and shoved Patch and Simba into a gigantic cage with a solid lock on the door before returning upstairs.

The young duo slumped to the cage floor in defeat. They had traveled all across Disneyland to bring back the House of Mouse's Christmas Tree Topper, and yet they wound up locked up tightly in a massive cage. Simba heaved a sigh of sorrow while Patch started sobbing. "We came all of this way to do something that had never been done before," he whined; "and we failed! We let everyone down, Simba!"

Simba placed a paw on Patch's shoulder. "We did our best, Patch," he said sadly.

"I was such a blind fool and jerk!" Patch cried. "We should've just stayed back in Animahiem and pretended nothing ever happened!"

"But what about the tree topper?"

"Forget about it! It's over, Simba! They locked us in this cage, we can never escape!"

Patch crawled to the back of the cage to cry in peace. Simba remained where he was. There was nothing to be done. It seemed like this was how they were going to spend Christmas: far away from their loved ones. It was especially upsetting for them since they instantly remembered all of the things they had done long before they had ran away from Animahiem. They made cookies with their mothers, drew pictures of what they wanted for Christmas, and even got many of the classmates at school to sing carols during lunch. That was officially past history to Patch, and there was nothing to be done to fix their situation.

Patch's ears suddenly picked up the sounds of a lock being picked. Shortly after, Simba could be heard saying, "Bingo!"

The pup glanced up and saw his best friend removing the lock from its position and letting it plummet to the floor. Simba looked at Patch and told him: "Looks like your confession gave me the inspiration to pick the lock."

"Oh, you big ninny!" Patch cried in joy, playfully punching Simba's arm.

In less than a minute, the cage door was swung open and Patch and Simba jumped out and quietly dashed up the stairs. Cruella and Scar were nowhere to be seen, but Jasper and Horace were in the den watching TV and drinking eggnog. Patch and Simba were able to stay hidden for about three minutes before they were spotted. Jasper and Horace put up a fierce fight, but in the end, Patch and Simba were strong enough to overpower the dimwitted henchmen and sped out into the night with the tree topper.

Cruella and Scar, who had been woken up by all of the ruckus from the battle, were shocked when they learned that their captives had escaped with their special object. "Get out there and find them!" Cruella demanded.

The search lasted for only an hour. A light snowfall hit the city and visibility was not at a good level. Both Cruella and Scar grew so enraged that their heads would've exploded from all of the anger that had been built up because of it. They still had tomorrow; but after that, that would be it.

Sure enough, sunlight appeared from the hills beyond Disneyland hours later, announcing that it was the 24th of December. It was both the first day of Hanukkah and Christmas Eve. While the villains continued their hunt for the tree topper, Patch and Simba crept along the outskirts of the city to keep themselves out of sight; the tree topper was visible for they had nowhere to store it in secret as they traveled.

They spent the entire day going around in circles, as if they were patrolling the city. At 6 o'clock, Patch and Simba broke away from the city of Villaindon when they heard the noises associated with rail travel. It was evident that a train station was a short distance away from them. Eating as much candy as they could, Patch and Simba darted towards the direction of the din.

Villaindon's train station was a bit cleaner than the city itself. Though the building wasn't fashionable as any other would be, it was a pleasant sight for Patch and Simba. Hopefully, there would be a train scheduled to depart for Animahiem. They had enough money for two tickets. Unfortunately, there were no trains listed on the schedule. It was predictable and disheartening.

Simba noticed something across the yard far from the station. From what he and Patch could make out, it was a steam locomotive. "Quickly," said Patch; "let's check it out before they come looking for us."

Patch and Simba were thrilled to discover that there was a steam engine far from the station. It was a blue locomotive named Casey Junior. After hearing their story, the engine agreed to take them back to Animahiem. They would've left the city tranquilly if Cruella and Scar, along with Horace and Jasper, spotted them departing the train yard and proceeded to chase after them.

Casey Junior zoomed down the tracks as fast as he could, his wheels and pistons pounded the rails furiously. Cruella's red car and Jasper and Horace's dirty van sped after him to the best of their abilities. Patch and Simba hid themselves in Casey's cab with the tree topper close to them. Nothing was going to convince them to give up the object that inspired the whole reason why the pup and cub ran away from home and risked everything to retrieve it.

With the light from the lantern on his head, Casey saw what loomed ahead of them: a towering mountain range. It was possible that the villains behind him saw it too, but they didn't care about it. His growing concerns eventually gave way to fear when the uproar from the chase caused a massive bank of snow at the top of the mountain to give way, creating a horrifying avalanche, and it was surging towards them!

Jasper and Horace did the right thing and stomped on the brakes of their van. Cruella and Scar however kept driving after the locomotive at perhaps 120 mph. Patch and Simba braced themselves for what was about to come while Casey charged straight towards the tunnel at the end of the tracks. All three characters- except Scar and Cruella -shut their eyes and prayed that it would end quickly.

Before long, Christmas morning arrived at Disneyland. Many people around the world would think that all of the characters would be overjoyed with the big holiday finally present; however, many of the characters were greatly concerned about Patch and Simba. Everyone was worried that something horrendous had happened to them days before. There were no signs of any criminal activity, so the reason why they had disappeared was unknown. Because of it, Simba's parents and Patch's family woke up feeling greatly sad.

All of that changed a short time before any clock would strike 8 o'clock.

Animahiem was swept with joy when Patch and Simba, along with the House of Mouse's Christmas Tree Topper, were discovered at the city's train station. After telling the story of their adventure, the pup and cub were reunited with their loved ones. Despite the happy moment, Patch and Simba could not help but feel guilty. "We were so selfish," they said.

Instead of any type of lecture, their parents informed them that their story was fill of good deeds and they had learned about it from the newspaper when they were reported. In the end, both Patch and Simba were spared of any punishment for being "angels".

That same name, an enormous party was held at the House of Mouse to honor Patch and Simba for their bravery and kindness. It was a very splendid occasion for everyone present. But then Simba found Nala all by herself looking miserable. He decided to speak with her, to let her know how sorry he was.

"Nala?" said Simba. "I just wanted to tell you that I'm terribly sorry for scaring you. Patch and I-"

"No, I'm sorry," Nala said turning around to face Simba. "It was me who messed up. I should've never acted so stupid!"

"Nala, don't blame yourself," Simba began. "It was a tiny mistake you made. I guess I took it very seriously. But, now that we're both sorry, could we be friends again?"

Nala didn't hesitate to respond. "I'd thought you'd never ask," was all she said before hugging Simba. What made the scene more adorable- based on another perspective -was that a glowing fairy named Tinker Bell flew over them with mistletoe in her grasp.

While the party was in full swing, Patch and Simba could not help but wonder what had happened to Scar and Cruella. All they knew was that there was a big avalanche that could've swept them away. If they were at the Villaindon Hospital, they would've seen the woman and lion in hospital beds, badly bruised from the night before.

A few lessons were learned from the tale of Patch and Simba and their quest for the tree topper. For instance, never outcast anyone around the holiday season. Also, make sure that all establishments have some sort of strong security systems built into them. And last but not least, allows share the love and kindness with others so no one is left out- it might not be a good rule, but it was not left out for unexplained reasons.

AUTHOR'S NOTE: Okay, so this story is finally finished and- well -I don't know what to think of it. It's longer than I had anticipated it would be, I felt like I had rushed through it, and I believe I might have repeated some words. But let me know what you think of it. Like I said, this is an experiment- a test. If you have some good or secret advice for me, send me a private message at any time. With that said, I want to wish everyone "Merry Christmas", "Happy Hanukkah", and- most importantly -I want to wish everyone "Happy Holidays"!


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